Cyclist Who Struck Pedestrian At Castro: "I Just Plowed Through"

The cyclist who struck a 71-year-old pedestrian — who later died from his injuries — at Castro and Market Streets last week allegedly took to the Internet on the day of the incident to tell his side of the story. In a message posted on the Mission Cycling Club forum, member Chris Bucchere apparently identified himself as the cyclist responsible for the crash in an incredibly detailed post describing his early morning ride from San Francisco to the Marin headlands and back. From Bucchere's post on March 29th:

[Emphasis, ours]

Around 8 a.m. I was descending Divisadero Street southbound and about to cross Market Street. The light turned yellow as I was approaching the intersection, but I was already way too committed to stop. The light turned red as I was cruising through the middle of the intersection and then, almost instantly, the southern crosswalk on Market and Castro filled up with people coming from both directions. The intersection very long and the width of Castro Street at that point is very short, so, in a nutshell, blammo.

The quote/unquote 'scene of the crime' was that intersection right by the landmark Castro Theatre - it leads from a really busy MUNI station to that little plaza where The Naked Guy always hangs out. It was commuter hour and it was crowded as all getup. I couldn't see a line through the crowd and I couldn't stop, so I laid it down and just plowed through the crowded crosswalk in the least-populated place I could find.

I don't remember the next five minutes but when I came to, I was in a neck brace being loaded into an ambulance. I remember seeing a RIVER of blood on the asphalt, but it wasn't mine. Apparently I hit a 71-year-old male pedestrian and he ended up in the ICU with pretty serious head injuries. I really hope he ends up OK."

According to both the Marin Independent Journal and the Guardian, however, a map of Bucchere's ride recorded by GPS app Strava allegedly showed him doing 35 mph while crossing Market. That ride record has also been deleted, but was referenced by other members of the Mission Cycling forumSF2G forum.
In the end, Bucchere says his bike was confiscated by the cops. Although he expressed some well wishes for the elderly victim who was expected to survive at the time but later died, Bucchere ended his note with an ode to his headgear, writing: "In closing, I want to dedicate this story to my late helmet. She died in heroic fashion today as my head slammed into the tarmac... The moral of this little story is: WYFH." Or, in other words: Wear your fucking helmet — a sentiment other commenters doubted, responding: "I'm not sure that's the moral of the story."